Syllabus– General Studies 1(society)

Context

Ministry of Minority Affairs and other Ministries/Departments of the Government are implementing various socio-economic and educational empowerment schemes which are benefitting every section of the society including minority communities.

The Central Government various efforts in the upliftment of minorities:

• It has made every section of the society an equal partner of progress with the commitment to “Development with Dignity” “Empowerment without Appeasement” and “Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas” ensuring equal benefits to all sections of the society.
  • Irrespective of his or her caste, religion, region and community is at the centre of welfare schemes of the Government.
• The Government has been treating all the sections of the society including the Muslims as equal partners of the development process.
• The Department Personnel & Training does not maintain separate community wise data on recruitment.
  • This Ministry implements various schemes with the objective: 
    • To increase the participation of the disadvantaged/underprivileged children/candidates of notified minority communities and
    • To improve the level of

• Education,
• Participation in employment,
• Skill and entrepreneurship development,
• Reducing deficiencies in civic amenities or infrastructure.

• Further, the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) has also been set up by Government as per NCM Act, 1992 to:
  • Evaluate the progress of the development of minorities under the Union and States;
  • Monitor the working of the safeguards provided in the Constitution and in laws enacted by Parliament and the State Legislatures;
  • Make recommendations for the effective implementation of safeguards for the protection of the interests of minorities by the Central Government or the State Governments;
  • Look into specific complaints regarding deprivation of rights and safeguards of the minorities and take up such matters with the appropriate authorities;
  • Cause studies to be undertaken into problems arising out of any discrimination against minorities and recommend measures for their removal;
  • Conduct studies, research and analysis on the issues relating to the socio-economic and educational development of minorities;
  • Suggest appropriate measures in respect of any minority to be undertaken by the Central Government or the State Governments;
  • Make periodical or special reports to the Central Government on any matter pertaining to minorities and in particular difficulties confronted by them; and
  • Any other matter which may be referred to it by the Central Government.

The Ministry of Minority Affairs various schemes:

• Educational Empowerment:
  • Scholarship Schemes – 
    • Pre-Matric Scholarship, Post-Matric Scholarship and Merit-cum-Means based Scholarship.
    • During the last 7 years, more than 4.52 crore beneficiaries have been provided different scholarships through the National Scholarship Portal (NSP) and Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) out of which more than 53% of beneficiaries are female.
  • Maulana Azad National Fellowship Scheme:
    • To provide financial assistance to students from notified minority communities and whose annual income is below Rs. 6.0 lakh per annum from all sources, to pursue higher education such as M.Phil and PhD.
  • In addition, the Maulana Azad Education Foundation implements the scheme viz. Begum Hazrat Mahal National Scholarship for meritorious girls belonging to notified minority communities studying in Classes IX to XII.
  • Naya Savera:
    • Free Coaching and Allied Scheme which aims to:

• Enhance skills and knowledge of students and candidates from notified minorities,
• Employment in Government Sector/ Public Sector Undertaking, jobs in the private sector, and
• Admission in reputed institutions in technical and professional courses at undergraduate and post-graduate levels.

• During the last seven years, about 69,500 candidates have benefitted from the coaching scheme of this Ministry.

• Nai Udaan: 
  • Support for notified minority community students, on clearing Prelims conducted by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), State Public Service Commission (PSC) Staff Selection Commission (SSC) etc.
• Economic Empowerment:
  • Seekho aur Kamao (Learn & Earn): 
    • It is a skill development initiative for minorities and aims to upgrade the skills of minority youth in various modern/traditional skills depending upon:
      • Their qualification,
      • Present economic trends and
      • Market potential.
    • It can earn them employment or make them suitably skilled to go for self-employment.
    • Since 2014-15 approx. 3.92 lakh persons have benefited from this employment-oriented program.
  • A mission has been launched by the Ministry of Minority Affairs under the Upgrading the Skill and Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts for Development (USTTAD) scheme:
    • To give an effective platform to minority artisans and culinary experts from across the country to showcase and market their finest handicraft and exquisitely crafted products through “Hunar Haats” organized by the Ministry.
    • The Ministry has engaged institutions of national repute namely, the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), National Institute of Design (NID) and Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP) to work in various craft clusters for design intervention, product range development, packaging, exhibitions and brand building etc.
    • So far, the Ministry has organised 28 “Hunar Haats” in which more than 5.5 lakhs artisans and people associated with them have been provided employment and employment opportunities, out of which more than 50% beneficiaries are women.
  • Nai Manzil – A scheme to provide education and skill training to the youth from minority communities.
  • Gharib Nawaz Employment Training Programme provides short-term job oriented skill development courses to youths belonging to minority communities.
  • National Minorities Development Finance Corporation (NMDFC) Loan Schemes: 
    • To provide concessional loans for self-employment and income-generating activities for the socio-economic development of the ‘backward sections’ amongst the notified minorities.
  • Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram (PMJVK):
    • Implemented by the Ministry of Minority Affairs, which aims to improve the socio-economic conditions and basic amenities in the identified Minority Concentration Areas.
    • The major projects approved under PMJVK are in sectors of: 
      • Education,
      • Health and skill,
      • Residential Schools, School buildings, Hostels,
      • Degree Colleges, ITIs, Polytechnics,
      • Smart Class Rooms,
      • Sadbhav Mandaps,
      • Health Centres,
      • Skill Centres,
      • Sports facilities and
      • Drinking-Water facilities, sanitation facilities etc.
    • In the last 7 years, under the “Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karykram” (PMJVK) more than 43 thousand basic infrastructure projects have been created in identified Minority concentrated areas across the country.
  • Prime Minister’s New 15 Point Programme for the welfare of minorities:
    • The Government ensures that the benefits of various government schemes for the underprivileged reach the disadvantaged and vulnerable sections of the minority communities also.
    • Under the programme, it is provisioned that, wherever possible, 15% of targets and outlays under various schemes should be earmarked for minorities.

Context

• Several state governments have passed Police Acts that are against Supreme Court verdict on police reforms. Centre too has failed to legislate a model Act.

• In police matters, today India is confronted with a situation where every state is legislating a different Police Act.
  • These Acts are being passed purportedly in compliance with the Supreme Court’s directions on police reforms given on September 22, 2006. However, an analysis of these Acts shows that the objective behind these laws is to give legislative cover to the existing arrangement and thereby circumvent the implementation of judicial directions.
  • Eighteen states have already passed Police Acts.

Background

• Soon after the Supreme Court’s directions on police reforms, the Police Act Drafting Committee of the Ministry of Home Affairs headed by Soli Sorabjee, a former Attorney General, came out with the Model Police Act, 2006. 
• The Government of India should have enacted a law based on this Model Police Act with such changes as it may have found necessary, and the states should have mutatis mutandis adopted it.
• That would have ensured a uniform police structure across the country. That did not happen. The Centre has been dilly-dallying on passing a Model Police Act.

SYLLABUS: GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 1

CONTEXT:

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), recently, inscribed the 13th-century Ramappa in Palampet, Telangana a ‘World Heritage Site’.

Dholavira, the archaeological site of a Harappan-era city, received the UNESCO world heritage site tag.

While Dholavira became the fourth site from Gujarat and 40th from India to make the list, it is the first site of the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC) in India to get the tag.

About UNESCO World Heritage Sites:

• A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area, selected by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for having cultural, historical, scientific or other forms of significance, which is legally protected by international treaties.
• The sites are judged to be important for the collective and preservative interests of humanity.
• A WHS must be an already-classified landmark, unique in some respect as a geographically and historically identifiable place having special cultural or physical significance.
• It may signify a remarkable accomplishment of humanity, and serve as evidence of our intellectual history on the planet.
• The list is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 UNESCO member states which are elected by the General Assembly.
• Each World Heritage Site remains part of the legal territory of the state wherein the site is located and UNESCO considers it in the interest of the international community to preserve each site.
• To be selected, a World Heritage Site must be an already classified landmark, unique in some respect as a geographically and historically identifiable place having special cultural or physical significance.

About History of Ramappa Temple:

• The iconic Ramappa Temple showcases the outstanding craftsmanship of the great Kakatiya dynasty.
• Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple is a masterpiece of Kakatiyan-era architecture, employing engineering innovation in the form of floating bricks, sand-box foundations, selection of building material and masterful stone sculpting.
• The Ramalingeswara temple, also known as the Ramappa temple, was named after its chief sculptor Ramappa. It is one of the very few temples in the world named after its sculptor.
• According to Telangana Tourism, “The mediaeval Deccan temple dates back to 1213 AD and was built under the patronage of the Kakatiya ruler Kakati Ganapathi Deva under the authority of his Chief Commander Rudra Samani at Ranakude in the Atukuru province.”
• Aside from its architecture and elaborate carvings on the temple’s walls, pillars, and ceilings, the most notable feature of this temple is that it was constructed using bricks that are so light that they can float on water.
• The temple is built on a 6-foot-high platform with a cruciform plan in a valley and took nearly 40 years to complete.
• The chamber of the temple is crowned by a ‘shikharam’ and surrounded by ‘pradakshinapatha’.

About Dholavira site and Distinct features:

• The IVC acropolis is located on a hillock near present-day Dholavira village in Kutch district, from which it gets its name. It was discovered in 1968 by archaeologist Jagat Pati Joshi.
• The site’s excavation between 1990 and 2005 under the supervision of archaeologists uncovered the ancient city, which was a commercial and manufacturing hub for about 1,500 years before its decline and eventual ruin in 1500 BC.
• After Mohen-jo-Daro, Ganweriwala and Harappa in Pakistan and Rakhigarhi in Haryana of India, Dholavira is the fifth largest metropolis of IVC.
• The site has a fortified citadel, a middle town and a lower town with walls made of sandstone or limestone instead of mud bricks in many other Harappan sites.
• Archaeologist cites a cascading series of water reservoirs, outer fortification, two multi-purpose grounds, one of which was used for festivities and as a marketplace, nine gates with unique designs, and funerary architecture featuring tumulus, hemispherical structures like the Buddhist Stupas, as some of the unique features of the Dholavira site.

SYLLABUS: GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 1

CONTEXT:

• The tragic death of nine tourists in a landslip in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh is a pointer to the fragility of the ecology of the Himalayan States.

Heavy rainfall and Extreme climatic events leave none even though well-developed:

• Heavy rainfall within a short period of time resulted in overflowing rivers, canals, and other water bodies flooding many towns and cities.
• The scenes of roads being washed away, houses getting inundated and stranded people being evacuated by helicopters, earthmovers and lifeboats were no different from what is normally witnessed in India during such disasters. It bore an uncanny resemblance to what Kerala experienced in August 2018.
• Not surprisingly, Kerala Chief Minister reacted to the situation in Europe. He expressed condolences and asked the Indian community in Europe to stand in solidarity with the flood victims.
• Also recalled with gratitude the technical assistance extended by the Netherlands to the State following the 2018 floods and the visit of the Dutch King and Queen to Kerala in 2019 when they personally reviewed the joint efforts underway for long-term flood resilience.

Loss to the Ecology will result in devastating effects:

• What should worry Himachal, and neighbouring Uttarakhand is that the States may be entering a phase of irreversible decline because of losses to their ecology; frequent landslides may become inevitable.
• Bootstrappingan incompatible model of development in the hills, represented by big hydroelectric projects and large-scale construction activity involving destruction of forests and damming of rivers, is an invitation to harm.
• Mega hydropower, which Himachal Pradesh is working to tap as a significant source of “green” power that substitute’s energy from fossil fuels, could alter several aspects of ecology, rendering it vulnerable to the effects of extreme events such as cloudbursts, flash floods, landslides and earthquakes.
• The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Energy during 2018-19 noted that the Himachal Pradesh, State could more than double its existing harnessed hydropower potential of 10,547 MW.
• As catastrophic weather events inflict frequent, heavy losses, Himachal Pradesh and the other Himalayan States can only watch their ecological base erode. Changing course may yet preserve a lot of their natural riches.

Lessons for India from other countries experiences:

• The floods in Europe call attention to the global need for countries to implement ecologically sensitive flood protection measures.
• The Dutch have gone beyond their conventional dependence on dikes, dams, walls and gates to protect themselves from floods.
• Their current disaster resilience mantra is to live with water, build with nature and make room for the river.
• They champion creating adequate space for rivers to overflow by protecting floodplains from human interference, deepening riverbeds and creating alternate channels for excess water.
• After two major floods in 1993 and 1995, the Dutch embarked on several projects to widen riverbanks and reshape the areas around rivers.
• Flood-prone areas should be identified, and projects initiated on an urgent basis to create room for rivers.
• Low-risk areas such as playgrounds, maidans, or agricultural fields should be earmarked to store excess rainwater.
• Drains must be built for diverting water into these storage units. This will relieve the stress on the existing drainage infrastructure.
• The stored water can later be discharged back into the drainage channel once the high water subsides.

Way Ahead:

• Across the world, countries are being confronted with situations of either too little or too much water and droughts interspersed with floods. Rainfall has become unpredictable.
• In the short term, strengthened disaster readiness, planning and preparation will help us deal with sudden, intense rain and consequent floods.
• Climate change and global warming will continue to cause extreme climatic events.
• While national and state disaster management authorities have grown in experience, competence and professionalism, there is a need for a higher degree of coordination and preparation across all levels of government.
• Practice drills need to be conducted in flood-prone areas. We need to test the effectiveness of flood warnings. The warnings should be in local languages and in simple terms.
• The United Nations Development Programme-World Bank-European Union Post Disaster Needs Assessment report prepared for Kerala after the 2018 floods pointed out that the drainage capacity of the rivers and canals of the State must be increased by creating more room for the water to flow.
• It called for removing obstructions and encroachments from existing water channels, the proper maintenance of such channels and creating additional channels for water to flow.

SYLLABUS: GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 2

CONTEXT:

The United States of America (US) is exiting Afghanistan at the same time its focus now shifting towards East Asia.

INDIAS PRESENCE IN AFGHANISTAN:

• Barring a brief pause in the 1990s, India has historically enjoyed good ties with Afghanistan, which go back to the 1950 Treaty of Friendship.
• Indian interests and influence suffered when the Taliban, backed by Pakistan, captured Kabul in 1996.
• But India was back in action as soon as the Taliban were ousted from power after the US invasion in 2001.
• India has made huge investments and commitments ever since, which run into over USD 3 billion and cultivated strong economic and defence ties with the Afghan government.
• Now, it is again staring at uncertainty with the US pullback having effectively changed the balance of power in Afghanistan and the Taliban making rapid territorial gains.

Syllabus: General studies paper 2

Context:

Climate, health, digital tech, and geo-economics will define the global conversation in the near future. India must be proactive in its foreign policy.

Signs of changes in the global economic domain:

• A new global minimum of taxis is being worked upon. The recent G7 meeting arrived at a consensus to apply a global minimum tax of at least 15 per cent.
  • The objective is not only to establish a minimum corporate tax regime but also a system where certain profits of large companies will be taxed where they are generated.
  • The global minimum tax rate would apply to companies’ overseas profits.
• Carbon border levies are being unveiled to aid net zero-emission goals. It means the fusion of trade and climate in unprecedented ways.
• Binding dispute resolution provisions are sought to be embedded into international agreements.
• Technological decoupling is taking place, leading to new value chains being set up.

Their cumulative impact will be on India. India’s foreign policy should understand and shape them or be at the receiving end.

Evolution of India’s foreign policy:

• Right from Kautilya’s Arthashastra, India’s worldview has been based on the theme Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the world is a family).
• India’s foreign policy has traditionally been a Nehruvian normative foreign policy; it often struggled to match its rhetoric with its actions.
• This led to foreign policy that was built on three key pillars:
  • nonalignment in the international arena;
  • preservation of autonomy in domestic affairs; and
  • Solidarity among developing nations, particularly those that had recently gained independence from colonial powers.
• Prefers geopolitics over geo-economics: Indian foreign policy has generally given primacy to the frictions and friendships relating to geopolitics. There is less emphasis on Geo-economics.
• Global policy initiatives by India
• The advocacy of decolonisation;
• the demand for nuclear disarmament;
• the crafting of the Non-Aligned Movement as a response to the Cold War;
• the support for United Nations (UN) peacekeeping; the quest for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council; and
• the call for the comprehensive convention on international terrorism
• Environmental initiatives: As global issues have evolved, India has, in a more direct manner, ventured to plug into development and economic activities as links to a global role.
  • For example, India has espoused climate action as an issue where what India does within its borders to benefit its citizens also matters well beyond our borders. This has both economic and political benefits.
• Fighting the pandemic: During the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, our foreign policy apparatus was key in securing essential global supplies even as our corona warriors battled the virus across the country.

The phase of transformation in foreign policy:

• By the late 1990sIndia was willing to place its own national interest – both economic and security – ahead of broader ideas of global justice and equity.
• A big domestic economic market gave India the space to engage the rest of the world on its own terms.
• India’s policy shift, which is ongoing today, seeks to position India among the great powers. India is now targeting a permanent seat at the United Nations Security Council, NSG membership and much more.

Challenges for India’s foreign policy:

The climate crisis, health security and digital technologies are now becoming primary global concerns.

• Migration and human mobility are emerging issues. India and Africa will be the largest repositories of young populations while most other societies age.
• Concerns about anti-microbial resistance are rising as are those about cybersecurity. All these are transboundary issues with intrinsic foreign policy dimensions as we have to engage on them globally and what we do domestically has global repercussions.
• India-Pakistan relations: Zero tolerance to terrorism approach involves taking a firm line with Pakistan and strengthening international cooperation for countering terrorism and extremism.
• India- China relations: The world is hurtling towards Chinese unipolarity; international borders are becoming irrelevant as climate change and cyber terror bypass them.
• China’s formidable Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)needs attention.
• The boundary question with China will remain important, as will our ties with other nations in South Asia. Rising geopolitical situations in
• India- Russia relations: Re-defining Indo-Russia ties are needed as Moscow gets closer to Beijing.
• The impact of COVID-19 on global order: It will affect all segments of our lives, including politics, society, governance, economy, trade and development.
  • Two possibilities: The emergence of a world order where China reigns supreme in a new unipolar world, or the second, where the world collectively shuns China for the Coronavirus crisis and embarks on a different global chapter.

The Central government informed Rajya Sabha that the recorded forest area in the country is 7,67,419 sq km, as surveyed by the India State of Forest Report, 2019.

• It has so far not quantified the forest area that has been under dispute.

Key points:

• The recorded forest area in the country:
  • 4,34,853 sq km falls under the Reserved Forests category,
  • 2,18,924 sq km under the Protected Forests category, and
  • 1,13,642 sq km are of unclassed forests.
• The word ‘forest’ is not defined in any Central Forest Act, namely the Indian Forest Act (1927), or the Forest Conservation Act (1980).
  • The Central government has not laid down any criterion to define forest.
• The states are responsible for categorising forest land, and it is the states that resolve dispute between these two departments.
  • The Indian Forest Act, 1927 gives states the rights to notify Reserved Forests in their areas.
  • As such forest area under dispute for the country has not been quantified by the Ministry.

Context

With a reduction in COVID-19 infections as the second wave weakens in India, it is important to focus on the pandemic’s disruptive impact on the food security and livelihoods of the poor and marginalised.

Covid-19 impact on hunger

• An alarming escalation in the global hunger that is unfolding right now.  There was a ‘dramatic worsening’ of world hunger in 2020, much of it likely related to the fallout of COVID-19.
• The ‘State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World’ report, estimates that around a tenth of the global population – up to 81.1 crore persons – were undernourished last year.

India’s efforts and results

• India has made enormous progress in food production over the years, with an inspiring journey towards self-sufficiency in food production marked by the Green Revolution. In 2020, India produced over 30 crore tonnes of cereals and had built up a food stock of 10 crore tonnes.
• The country has registered record harvests over the last few years. India exported a record 1.98 crore tonnes of rice and wheat in FY21.

Govt. initiatives

• Vulnerable and marginalized families in India continued to be buffered against the food crisis by its robust Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS).
• As data shows, there was an unprecedented spike in the uptake of subsidised and free foodgrains during the lockdown.
• The government also allowed NGOs/civil society organisations to buy rice and wheat at subsidised prices directly from nearby Food Corporation of India (FCI) warehouses.
• Increased entitlements given to National Food Safety Act (NFSA) beneficiaries in 2020.
• Under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), 81.3 crore NFSA beneficiaries received an additional 5 kg of foodgrains per person per month and 1 kg of pulses per family per month, free of cost, for eight months.
  • The PMGKAY was introduced in 2020 for eight months to provide relief to 80 crore beneficiaries covered under NFSA from COVID-induced economic hardships.
  • During the third phase of PMGKAY, about 89% of the allocated foodgrains were distributed to beneficiaries. Implemented for eight months last year and for seven months this year, the PMGKAY outlay will add up to a total expenditure of ₹2,28,000 crore over 15 months.
• Under the Atmanirbhar Bharat package, 8 crore migrants were provided 5 kg of foodgrains per month, free of cost.

Challenges:

• Access and portability of food entitlements: Ensuring that food support focuses on at-risk groups including persons with disabilities, the elderly, single women-led households, transgender persons, HIV-affected persons, displaced persons, refugees and orphan children

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) have tasked the State Councils of Educational Research and Training (SCERTs) to develop four State Curriculum Frameworks (SCFs).

About National Curriculum Framework (NCF):

NCF provides the framework for the creation of the school syllabi and the writing of textbooks while giving guidelines on teaching practices in India.

Purpose: To make education comparable across the country in qualitative terms and also making it a means of ensuring national integration without compromising on the country’s pluralistic character.

It addresses four issues:

1. Educational purpose
2. Educational experience
3. Organization of experience
4. Assessing learner

NCF is only suggestive and provides guidelines on different aspects of education. All the states also developed State Curriculum Framework (SCF) in line with NCF.

The NCERT will also provide support to the SCERTs in terms of guidance, training of personnel, and technology platforms to develop these documents.

The NCF document shall henceforth be revisited and updated once every 5-10 years, taking into account the frontline curriculum.

School Education and Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER):

• Universalization of education from preschool to secondary level with 100% Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in school education by 2030.
• School governance is set to change, with a new accreditation framework and an independent authority to regulate both public and private schools.
• Assessment reforms with 360-degree Holistic Progress Card, tracking Student Progress for achieving Learning Outcomes
• A new and comprehensive National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education (NCFTE)2021, formulated by the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) in consultation with the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

Issues that need to be deal while developing National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE):

• NEP 2020 puts Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) and Classes 1 and 2 (first five years of education, for the age group three 3 to 8 years) as one stage.
• However, the ECCE and Classes 1 and 2 will be run in separate institutions by different teachers having different skill sets.
• Teachers’ qualifications, salaries, and training are supposed to be different, their curriculum frameworks are supposed to be different and ECCE and classes should not be clubbed together.
• The policy is chock-a-block with words for values, capabilities and skills, all justified as needed for emerging market requirements.
• Furthermore, these lists are just heaps of words, devoid of any organising principle to decide priorities, inter-relationships and deriving curricular content and pedagogy from them.
• A similar unorganised list is repeated ad nauseum in the name of pedagogical recommendations.
• And yet, it fails to provide appropriate criteria to choose pedagogy at different stages and for different curricular areas.
• The so-called foundational stage crumbles under the slightest scrutiny on organisational as well as pedagogical grounds.

Solution for the policy formulation:

The purpose of surveys on public opinion is to create a consensus on basic values, and the vision and the direction our education system should take.

One way out of this problem is to take a lot of help from the Secondary Education Commission Report (SECR) and Zakir Hussain’s Basic National Education (BNE) report.

Context

The Union Government of India, aware of the challenges posed by anti-microbial resistance (AMR) in the country, has taken the following measures to address the issue

Steps were taken to address AMR Issue

• National programme on AMR containment
  • Launched during 12th FYP in 2012-17.
  • Under this programme, AMR Surveillance Network has been strengthened by establishing labs in State Medical College.
  • 30 sites in 24 states have been included in this network till 30th March 2021.
• National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (NAP-AMR) focusing on One Health approach was launched on 19th April 2017 with the aim of involving various stakeholder ministries/departments.
  • Delhi Declaration on AMR– an inter-ministerial consensus was signed by the ministers of the concerned ministries pledging their support in AMR containment.
  • In the line with NAP-AMR three states have launched their state action plan
    • Kerala has launched KARSAP
    • Madhya Pradesh has launched MP-SAPCAR
    • Delhi has launched SAPCARD
• AMR Surveillance Network:  ICMR has established AMR surveillance and research network (AMRSN) in 2013, to generate evidence and capture trends and patterns of drug-resistant infections in the country. This network comprises 30 tertiary care hospitals, both private and government.
• AMR Research & International Collaboration: ICMR has taken initiatives to develop new drugs /medicines through international collaborations in order to strengthen medical research in AMR.
  • ICMR along with the Research Council of Norway (RCN) initiated a joint call for research in antimicrobial resistance in 2017.
  • ICMR along with the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), Germany has a joint Indo-German collaboration for research on AMR.